A vulnerable tenant claims he wakes up coughing his own stomach lining after 'chocking on mould' in his grim flat.
Stephen, 46, from Dagenham, East London, is living with numerous health issues and claims he is “trapped” in his council flat which is in a “severe state” of disrepair.
The tenant, who wishes to be known by his first name, moved into the flat five years ago and says his home is “not safe”, MyLondon reported.
He claims he has been forced to live with extensive mould throughout the property , some of which he claims is toxic, along with broken radiators, cracked walls and broken windows.
Stephen said: “I’m waking up choking on mould in the morning, coughing so badly the lining of my stomach is coming up."
He also claims his garden is hugely overgrown, and the council is yet to clear it.
He continued: “My bedroom is filled up with green dust mould, which is quite toxic. The council knew the mould problem was there, but nothing they’ve done has worked [to fix it]."
“Where I am, it’s not safe. People can walk down my side alley and climb over my fence into my back garden," he added.
"They’ve tried to break in here before. There’s loads of knife marks on the back framework of the door.”
Stephen suffers from bronchial asthma, for which he is receiving intensive treatment and is forced to use a steroid inhaler.
The 46-year-old also lives with mental health issues, including bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder, which make day-to-day life difficult.
Stephen claims his living situation has made his mental and physical health conditions much worse.
He admitted: “I’m not sleeping at night.
“I don't really interact with people a lot, so my house is my salvation. The promise was, they were gonna clear out my back garden and put a fence up. I would have loved that.
“The council knows I’ve got serious problems and have health issues. I’ve made well over 20 complaints to the council since I’ve lived here, and my doctor has given me seven to 10 courses of antibiotics because of my breathing.”
The mould in Stephen’s bedroom is so intense that he has been sleeping on the sofa in his living room for over a year.
“I have a brand new bed in the bedroom that I've never slept on. I’ve been sleeping on the sofa for over a year now. I’ve got pain in my back every day from it,” he said.
Stephen believes Barking and Dagenham Council has fallen short of the standards expected of a council, with regards to duty of care towards its residents.
He said the situation has gotten so bad that he is tempted to move away from London all together, and is attempting to save up to buy a caravan outside of the capital.
A Barking and Dagenham Council spokesperson said: “This matter is subject to proceedings and those proceedings are defended.
"We would have expected a complete report to contain that information.
“Whenever the tenant has reported disrepair within the property to the council works have been undertaken where access was granted.
"There have been a number of occasions where access has not been granted.
“Furthermore, it is each tenant’s responsibility to maintain gardens that are let to them with their property.
“At no time has the tenant engaged the council’s complaints department to express dissatisfaction with the repairs process.”
